A Slightly Different Beginning
by Earwen Uruviel Tinuviel
Summary: **CHAPTER 3 FINALLY UPLOADED!!!!!** This is an AU fic. What would have happened if Lily had married Severus instead of James. How would this change how Harry was brought up? Read to find out
1. Chapter 1In the Beginning

DISCLAIMER: I do NOT, I repeat NOT own Harry Potter or any of the characters affiliated with JK Rowlings genius. So do not sue me because you won't get much!  
  
A/N: Well I've started a new story people, aren't you all happy? Now this is going to be an AU also known as Alternate Universe fic. I've had this little plot bunny running around since I had Harry turned into a baby in Unknown Father and I can't get away from it. Now if this is the first time that you're coming across my work then you don't need to go and read the other stories that I've written because this story isn't part of the series that I just completed. Now this is not a Severitus Challenge fic but I'm keeping with the plot that Severus is Harry's father but since this is an AU fic then that means that it's different. So I hope you all enjoy this new story that have read my previous works and for those of you who are just now coming across my writing I hope that I don't disappoint you.  
  
A/N2: Oh and I apologize in advance for anything badly written. I am not, nor will I ever be, a writer. I do this for fun. If you want to know what I do then click on my penname and read my bio and it'll tell you. So if my writing style displeases you in any way I apologize. Oh and those of you who have read my stuff before, I'm heavy on angst and especially 'Harry torture' though I doubt there'll be much now because this is the early stuff like 'Baby and Little Harry' So I'm going to stop babbling now and get on with the story. ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
A/N3: Oh and just so you all know, I never write an outline or have an in depth plot in mind, it's just general stuff and I only write what I'm inspired to write and when I have the inspiration.  
  
Chapter 1 (of who knows how many!)  
  
Severus Snape couldn't be happier. He had a beautiful fiancé, good friends and was extremely intelligent. Severus' fiancé was Lily Evans, charms genius and former Gryffindor. Severus himself was a potions genius and it was because both of them had struggled in the other's respective field that they formed a friendship and relationship.  
  
Severus and Lily both had graduated Hogwarts two years prior and had since entered the Ministry. Lily was working in the Department for the Development of Experimental Charms and Severus was working as an apprentice to the Ministry's top Potions Master. Both hoped one day to get a job teaching at Hogwarts since they dearly missed the school.  
  
Severus especially wanted to be closer to the school because of the amount of times he had to give reports to its headmaster Albus Dumbledore. The reason Severus had to give these reports is because Severus was a spy for the light in Voldemort's Inner Circle of Death Eaters.  
  
Severus had been forced to join by his father who had died only a year after Severus finished Hogwarts. Severus' mother had died when he was in his 6th year. Severus had never been close with his father but his father had brought him up and trained him to be the 'perfect little death eater.'  
Severus' heart just wasn't in it. He never had gotten along with his father but had learned at a very young age what would happen if he went against the man. His father had been Voldemort's right hand man while he was alive and practically expected the same for Severus.  
  
Severus himself was very high ranking in the Inner Circle and Voldemort placed a lot of trust in Severus. The man was absolutely volatile and knew some impressive hexes and curses. Plus the fact that he could brew extremely complex potions didn't hurt either.  
  
Lily was fully aware of her fiancé's double agent act and knew that there was nothing that the two of them could do about it. It was this or death for Severus and Lily couldn't bear to see that happen.  
  
Upon graduation the two had moved into a small flat in Diagon Alley that suited the two perfectly. It was close to their jobs and where they could get supplies and money if they needed it. Severus had received a large portion of money upon his initiation into the Death Eaters from his father and even more when he graduated so the two were not desperate for money. Lily's job paid very well while Severus' didn't so it worked out for the two of them.  
  
Now that Severus' father was dead they were planning on getting married. They had wanted to wait until Severus' father was out of the picture. Lily's parents had unfortunately been killed in a raid by Death Eaters when Lily was in her 6th year. Lily's parents as part of their will had divided their assets equally between Lily and Petunia though they left slightly more to Petunia since she was married. Lily didn't care though.  
  
Also now that Severus' father was dead they decided to move into his family ancestral manor since it was left to Severus since he was an only child. They had moved into the manor and Lily had an absolutely grand time redecorating since the house was rather dreary and dull.  
  
It was only about a month after they moved in that plans were seriously getting underway for the wedding. Severus and Lily had both decided that they wanted a small, private ceremony with only their closest friends and in Lily's case, family.  
  
Finally the date came around and the small group of friends was gathered in the Great Hall at Hogwarts. Albus was like a father figure to Lily and Severus and so it was only logical that they would ask him to marry them.  
  
The wedding was beautiful. They were married on August 1st. Everything went perfectly to plan. Lily and Severus and their small assembly of friends were all very happy. Of course that night they did as all married couples usually do their first official night of man and wife.  
  
The next months went by perfectly. Both Lily and Severus' jobs were going very well. Severus had managed to keep his marriage to a 'mudblood' from Voldemort. He managed to keep the fact that he was married period from Voldemort.  
  
It was soon discovered that Lily was pregnant. Severus and Lily couldn't have been happier. It couldn't have been better timing other than the fact that the war was raging. Severus was a bit worried. It was common knowledge among the death eaters that any offspring had to be pledged to Voldemort. Severus did not want that to happen to his child what had happened to him. However; he was content to not think about it at the present moment.  
  
The pregnancy was going fine. Albus was thrilled for the young couple and so was the marauders. Lily and Severus were having a lot of fun decorating a nursery in their home. Severus and Lily had insisted to know the sex of the baby as soon as it could be determined. They found out that they were expecting a boy.  
  
They had already started to pick names and had it narrowed down to Harrison Cristoph and Harold Darien. Either way the child's nickname would be Harry.  
  
Finally the time came for little Harry to be born. They had finally decided to just to name the boy Harold Zacharia Damien. Finally on July 31st at 2:47am after 40 hours of labor Harry came into the world with a wail that would have sent a banshee running for the hills.  
  
As soon as the nurses had cleaned and wrapped up the screaming and wriggling boy they handed him to Severus. Just as Harry was settled in his father's arms he quieted down. He opened up his eyes to let Severus see that he had inherited his mother's emerald green eyes. Thankfully he had inherited his mother's petite nose as well. On top of the tiny baby's head was a shock of dark red hair with black highlights interspersed throughout.  
  
Looking down at Harry you could tell immediately that he was Severus' son. There was no arguing about it.  
  
After Severus had gotten over his shock he turned around to see that the nurses had just finished everything up with Lily and she was now waiting to see her son. Severus brought the tiny bundle over to his wife and held the baby next to Lily's head who said,  
  
"Hello Harry. Happy Birthday."  
  
Severus smiled and leaned over his son and kissed Lily chastely on the lips. Harry had managed to get a tiny fist free from the blanket and had grabbed a fistful of his father's long hair and tugged. This drew Severus' attention back to his son and said,  
  
"I think somebody's feeling left out."  
  
Lily weakly smiled and closed her eyes since she was positively exhausted from the entire ordeal. Severus looked down and said,  
  
"Welcome to the world Harold Zacharia Damien Snape."  
  
With a final kiss on his son's forehead he handed him over to the nurse who was going to take Harry to the nursery. Now that the adrenaline rush had passed from his son's birth he realized just how tired he was.  
A/N: Well I hope that that was a good opening chapter. I know that if I had done the details of the wedding and pregnancy it would take me absolutely forever to get this story going. So I hope that was alright and I'm a sucker for slightly sappy stuff but I hope that it's not too sappy and I apologize if it ever gets too sappy. Now please push that little 'go' button and tell me what you think. I find that I thrive on reviews and the more nice ones I get the faster I'll write and give you more (hopefully good) chapters. But for those of you who don't know and some of you might have forgotten PLEASE NO FLAMES! In the wise words of my father if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. So thank you all for reading and I hope that this is a good story for everybody. TTFN!! 


	2. Chapter 2Bringing Harry Home and Christm...

A/N: Well I'm definitely glad that you guys like this new story and you had better believe that there'll be some Sevvie with dirty nappie action ;-) Now for the rest of you guys and your questions you'll just have to read to find out what happens. Sorry for being evil like that but that's my right as the author ;-) :-P So thanks so much for all of your nice comments and I'm so sorry for the delay but my laptop has been having issues and problems for the past week and now I've finally figured it out and gotten it up and running semi-normally so here's the next chapter. ENJOY!!!!!!  
  
Chapter 2  
  
Lily was released a couple of days later with Harry. Even though the boy was born full term it was blatantly obvious that he had inherited his mother's petiteness. Lily as a 21 year old was only 5'3" and about 100 pounds now that her pregnancy was over. Severus on the other hand was quite tall at 6' even and weighed about 150 pounds (a/n: for you brits and people who go by stones that's about 7 and a quarter and a little over 10 stones even respectively)  
  
Harry was positively tiny at only 17" and only a little over 6 pounds (a/n: little less than half a stone.) You would think that Harry was premature because he was so small. But he wasn't by any means. In fact he was a week late.  
  
Severus and Lily arrived at the manor, opting to take a muggle taxi since it was not practical to apparate or travel by floo. Thankfully Lily being the muggleborn that she was, had a driver's license and a car so at least they'd be able to get around easily while Harry was still a baby. In fact Lily had promised Severus that she would teach him to drive after Harry was born.  
  
Upon arrival at the manor Severus and Lily made their way up to the nursery. Harry was dead asleep in his mother's arms. They walked into the nursery decorated in blue, green, red and yellow. They walked past the crib and over to the bassinette that was tucked over in the corner and gently set the tiny infant in it and covered him up with a fuzzy light blue blanket.  
  
The two young adults stood at the foot of the bassinette watching their baby sleep. Severus put his arm around Lily's waist and said,  
  
"Merlin look at him. I can't believe he's actually here. He looks like his mother."  
  
Lily chuckled a little, smiled and said,  
  
"He looks like his father as well."  
  
Severus smirked and said, "Yes he does, doesn't he?"  
  
Severus leaned down and captured his wife's lips in a sweet little kiss and they crept from the room. They still had to owl their friends and family to tell them that they were home with Harry. Soon they knew their manor was going to be overrun with people and they had to get ready for it.  
  
Two weeks later Snape Manor was playing host to Sirius, Remus and James. Also Lily's year mates Caroline and Marina were there. The manor was bustling and the many house elves were kept very busy catering to the many guests.  
  
Harry didn't know what to make of all the attention he was getting, he just knew that there were a lot of people and he didn't like the attention. He quickly demonstrated just how healthy a set of lungs he had when everybody constantly crowded around him. After he let loose the first mighty wail the others got the picture.  
  
The week long visit after that consisted of quietly sitting around and whenever Harry was actually awake being passed around the group. Definitely not crowding the tiny, temperamental infant.  
  
Lily and Severus had decided to name James Harry's godfather. The end of the visit was supposed to be Harry's christening. Lily had been raised in a very religious home and had a very deep and firm belief in God. She had convinced Severus to do the muggle tradition of christening Harry. They would also to do the official ceremony of the oath and bonding of Godparents. Lily and Severus had agreed that Caroline would be Harry's Godmother. This was because Caroline was Lily's closest friend while in Hogwarts. Practically like sisters those two were. Severus had had a good scowl when he found out what Harry was to wear for the christening though. His exact words were,  
  
"I will not have my son wearing a dress and looking like a girl.  
  
Lily promtly shot back with,  
  
"Really? Because I know for a fact that my nephew wore the same thing at his christening and my cousins for that matter. It's almost like a robe."  
  
"But Lily it has LACE on it! Couldn't we find something laceless?!"  
  
Lily let out a frustrated sigh and said with puppy dog eyes,  
  
"If you really want but my grandmother made this and I don't want to hurt her feelings by not using it. It would mean a lot to her if her great grandson wore this."  
  
Under that gaze Severus completely caved and said,  
  
"That look will be the death of me. All right, for your grandmother."  
  
Lily squealed and jumped up to peck Severus on the cheek and said,  
  
"Thank you Love."  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
The day of the christening came along with the arrival of Lily's grandparents. (a/n: sorry but I don't know anything about christening ceremonies or anything like that so I'm just going to skim over it. Sorry) The ceremony was beautiful and afterwards of course a small gathering was held at Snape Manor. The day after the christening the manor was empty of all guests. Little Harry couldn't have been happier to just have his parents and not all those annoying people around. It was very tiring for a baby.  
  
The next few months passed by with relative ease. Harry was a very mild mannered baby, definitely taking after his mother in that. Though on occassion he did show that he had inherited his father's temper. There was darkness that reigned over the happy family. Voldemort was starting to become suspicious of Severus and Severus knew it. Voldemort had gotten wind that Harry had been born and he was not pleased that Severus kept that little tidbit of information from his 'Lord.' The torture session for that night was one of the worst that ever happened and Severus had to spend 2 days in the hospital wing at Hogwarts. As soon as Albus had informed her, Lily and Harry were instantly there.  
  
Harry had a very close relationship with his father. He couldn't bear to be far away from the man when he knew that he was supposed to be there. Even though Harry was still very young he had a set routine and schedule that he knew very well. He knew when his mommy and daddy were supposed to be there. He even knew his house elf very well. Since Lily had gone back to work Harry had a house elf that was assigned specifically to take care of Harry. It was like having a nanny for some muggle families. Harry got along very well with all of the house elves. He had a very even temperament and for the most part was a very happy baby and easily entertained.  
  
More time passed and it was time for Christmas. Severus and Lily had opted to have a nice quiet Christmas at home with no visitors or traveling anywhere. Severus and Lily both had family traditions, which actually turned out to be the same. Christmas Eve found Severus, Lily and not quite 5 month old Harry sitting in the private lounge tucked back into one of the far recesses of the massive mansion.  
  
Severus and Lily were both playing with Harry on the floor with several toys. Harry was thoroughly enjoying the attention from his parents. He was cooing and gurgling away happily. Harry had just finished his supper and now it was time for him to open his one present (or have a present opened for him) and go to bed.  
  
Harry started making grabbing motions from his mother's lap at the brightly wrapped box that his daddy was bringing towards him. It was wrapped in red paper and a bright silver bow to top it off. Severus couldn't help but smile and chuckle at his son's antics and sat down next to his wife and said,  
  
"So you wanna see what's inside Harry?"  
  
An indignant screech was the response Severus got. Severus snorted and said as he unwrapped the present,  
  
"All right Harry, I heard you. Don't get your nappies in a twist."  
  
Severus opened the box to reveal a large (at least from harry's point of view), plush, green snake. It seemed that Harry had been satisfied withthe silver bow that he was now happily chewing on. Severus grinned and plucked the bow from his son's grasp and promptly traded it for the stuffed animal that Harry seemed even more satisfied with. Harry did a couple of experimental squeezes and pets then promptly put the end of the snake in his mouth which was his signal that he liked it. Severus and Lily smiled and took the happily chewing Harry upstairs to the nursery and settled him into his crib. Exhausted from the day Harry fell right asleep with his new toy clutched close to himself.  
  
Severus and Lily smiled and crept from the room and went back downstairs to eat their dinner and enjoy their Christmas Eve. Severus had given Lily a beautiful gold and emerald bracelet to open that night. Lily had given Severus a handsome silver pocket watch with a picture of Lily and Harry on the opposite flap. On the back of the watch it had engraved in it 'To my dearest Severus on our first Christmas as a family.'  
  
After they were done downstairs Severus and Lily retreated to their room. The Lord must have been on their side that night because Harry only woke up twice that night. Once needing a bottle and the other needing his diaper changed. Severus and Lily were woken up the next morning by the sound of their son squealing, gurgling and cooing through the baby monitor that Lily had insisted they get even though it was completely muggle.  
  
They went into Harry's room and got the little boy, changed his nappy and went downstairs to get Harry's bottle. Harry was fed his bottle and bowl of mush that Lily swore was rice cereal while Severus worked on passing out the vast amount of presents that were under the tree, most of which were for Harry of course. Severus and Lily had both resolved that even though they were wealthy that Harry would not be spoiled rotten and given everything he wanted.  
  
The gift opening commenced after Harry had eaten. Mostly Harry got stuffed animals, toys and clothes. Severus had gotten Lily some things that she had been wanting, which was mostly clothes, pictures in frames, artwork and jewelry that he would know that she would love. Lily had gotten Severus things sort of along the same lines. Severus had one last surprise for Lily though. After all of the gifts had been opened and Harry had dropped off for a morning nap in his muggle swinging chair Severus said,  
  
"Sweetheart I have one last surprise for you. I was talking to Albus after the last time I was summoned and he mentioned to me that our old potions professor is retiring after this term and offered me the job for next September."  
  
Lily's eyes widened in surprise and happiness and launched herself at her husband and kissed him fully and passionately on the lips. After they broke it off she said,  
  
"Oh Sev I am so proud and happy for you. You have been working for years trying to get this position and now it's happening. So I'm to assume that you'll be at Hogwarts except for Christmas and Summer Holidays while Harry and I stay here?"  
  
Severus looked slightly uneasy and said,  
  
"That's only partially true. Albus offered me the job because he wants me close to him. We have reason to believe that Voldemort knows that I'm married to you. He never knew who Harry's mother was, just that he was born."  
  
Lily got a slightly confused look in her eyes and said,  
  
"What are you getting at Sev?"  
  
"I'm saying that you know how the Dark Lord feels about muggle borns. Especially how he feels about a muggle born marrying a pureblood. Albus and I have been formulating a plan to make it look like we had been married but you left me over discovering my mark and took Harry with you. We think that you'd be best going into hiding with James since he's already planning on it. Make it look like you two had gotten married and James had adopted Harry as his son."  
  
Severus paused for a moment and continued as he saw the shocked expression on Lily's face.  
  
"Of course none of this will happen, we'll just make it look like it. I only want you and Harry to be safe. I'll be perfectly safe while I'm at Hogwarts and you would be perfectly safe with James. Albus and I have already spoken to him and he has agreed to it. You know he thinks of you practically as a little sister. Besides he's Harry's Godfather and Harry already knows him. Now none of this would really happen for a while but I wanted to talk about it with you now."  
  
Lily stayed silent for a few minutes and said as she put her arm around her husbands shoulders,  
  
"You're absolutely right Love. This war is getting nasty and I have known for a while now that the Dark Lord would probably kill us all if he found out I was married to you. It's already clear that you and Albus have got this worked out so I have no problem, as long as I know you're safe then that's all that matters."  
  
Severus cracked a weak smile and put a small, sweet kiss on Lily's lips and said,  
  
"I love you more than anything in this world and beyond."  
  
Lily smiled and said, "And I the same."  
  
Just then Harry woke up with a little squeal and the rest of the day was whiled away with playing with Harry and his new toys, eating, and napping.  
A/N: Well I decided to stop it there because I'm plum fresh out of ideas for now and have been working on this sucker off and on for a little over a day now and decided that seemed like a good stopping space. Now you all should know the drill by now when it comes to pushing that little 'go' button and leaving me a NICE review (NO FLAMES) and telling me what you think and encouraging me to write more and faster. Hopefully my laptop won't give me any more problems and I'll be able to get the next chapter out sooner than this one. It all depends on my schedule and my laptop though. So REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!! TTFN all! 


	3. Chapter 3 Harry's First Birthday and Hal...

A/N: Okay here it is people! I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to get this out but I've been so incredibly busy you can't even imagine. I'm sorry if this chapter sucks people just you all know the rule by now that I don't like flames. I believe in the phrase 'if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all.' So here it is after the long awaited wait. I think you all deserve a slight explanation. Basically this summer has been very trying for me. I found out earlier this year that my 3 year old neice that I love like a parent loves a child, has lupus and isn't doing the greatest. Then I had to leave a job that I've held for the last 4 years because of doctors orders and get another job. It took me a while to find a new job but I've been working that for a while now and am enjoying it but leaves me very tired. Then I had to go on a trip to Utah for my brother's wedding, then my nephew came to visit for a couple of weeks and I had to entertain him and that's an exhausting job. To top it all off my mom hurt her shoulder this summer and hasn't been able to do anything and has been a right witch about it. Then to top it all off I had to call my school a lot because I found out that I've simultaneously had my loan cut in half, my scholarship taken away (for bogus reasons mind you) and my educational grant taken away as well because I'm entering my 9th and FINAL semester of college. Then I had to have pictures done for new headshots, portraits for graduation announcements and photo shoots for a dress that my friend (who's doing an internship in London for a big fashion agency) custom designed for me for my vocal recital that I'm doing this fall. So basically as you all can tell.....I've been so busy between work, hiding from my mother (literally), going out with friends that I never get to see, spending time with family I never get to see and studying for 2 major tests that I have to take the day after I get back to school because it's the only way that I'll be able to graduate in December. So again I am sooooo sorry about taking so incredibly long (I've forgotten how long it's been since I last posted a chapter) to get this one out. But again if this chapter sucks then please don't flame me, I've had a very trying summer and have had a lot of things on my mind and have been under an enormous amount of pressure. Oh and I want to thank all of you for your lovely reviews to keep me going even now at this very late stage in the game.  
  
Chapter 3  
  
The early months of 1981 were spent in a whirlind of working and James dropping by frequently so that Harry could get used to being with him. Harry was quickly learning to crawl, stand and then at 10 months he finally took his first steps. He was very quickly learning to speak to and for one so young he could very well. Spring came and faded into summer at Snape Manor but none of the inhabitants noticed. They were far too busy.   
  
They had agreed that the day after Harry's first birthday that Harry and Lily would leave with James. It made sense since Severus was due to go to Hogwarts to prepare for the upcoming term anyways. Severus' calls to Voldemort were becoming more and more frequent. Every other day almost in fact.   
  
Voldemort was rather angry because he knew that somebody was leaking information to Dumbledore but he didn't know who. He had heard about Severus' appointment at Hogwarts and was pleased because he was under the impression that Severus was already spying on the light side. In fact it was the other way around but Voldemort didn't know that. Thankfully.  
  
Harry's first birthday was fast approaching and lots of arrangements were being made for his party and for going into hiding. Dumbledore had a great grandson who worked at the Ministry and would help with the documents since they were going to be false.  
  
Harry's birthday arrived and they opted to have a party with their closest friends. By this time Harry loved attention was was more than happy to be doted on by the adoring adults. Harry was the epitomal cute baby and he knew it too. He was definitely Slytherin in the sense that he could already manipulate the other adults very well to get just about anything he wanted.  
  
Harry had a great party with lots of presents and succeeded in getting his birthday cake all over his face and a nice little fistful in his father's hair. The next morning came all too soon for Severus, Lily and Harry. Harry had never cried more than he did that day. It tore Severus' heart in two knowing that it would be a long time before he would see his son again. It tore Lily to shreds as well because she was feeling the same about her husband. James was torn.  
  
Lily, Severus and James had all of Harry's things moved to James' manor so that it would be easier on Harry since this was obviously going to affect him more. His room looked the same exact way it was at Snape Manor. It was just after lunch and Harry was dead asleep, tired out from all the crying he had done. He refused to eat or be calmed and finally fell asleep from exhaustion.  
  
The next few days went by very slowly for Lily and James. Harry had gone into an extremely depressed state, he would hardly eat or do anything. Harry wanted his Papa and nothing else. After a week they were beginning to get very worried. Harry was a skinny baby to begin with and because of this he was starting to lose weight. Lily and James were at a loss as to what to do.   
  
Finally they wrote to Severus and told him about the situation. To answer the problem Severus sent back a charmed letter to Harry saying that he loved and would see him soon and to be good for James and his mother. After that Harry seemed to revert back into his normal, happy self.....just as long as he listened to that letter at least twice a day.   
  
By the start of September the falsified documents were filed and Lily and Harry appeared to be Potters. Arrangements were also being made for the Fidelius charm to be performed. James suspected Remus to be the traitor and coupled with the fact that he was a werewolf took him naturally out of the running for secret keeper. Sirius would be too obvious since everybody knew that he was James' best friend and of course be trusted with it. That only left Peter since Lily's friends were all very visible and well known. They arranged to have the charm performed around the middle of September since there were still a few loose ends to tie up.  
  
The charm was finally performed. It was rather disconcerting for James and Lily to see the odd gleam in Peter's small, watery eyes. Peter himself was beside himself with glee because this would fit very well into his plans. Peter had everything planned out. He would lay low until Halloween so that Lily and James would think he had gone into hiding like he told them he would. It was the perfect plan.  
  
October descended upon Hogwarts and Godric's Hollow but the inhabitants barely noticed. Voldemort's attacks were escalating. Severus was being called more and more. It was so often that he would be called almost every night. Severus had been clever and had turned in a lower ranking death eater saying that he was the traitor, thereby saving his own skin. Besides the idiot would have gotten himself killed in an instant. He was a kid straight out of Hogwarts whose father was in the most trusted inner circle.  
  
Quickly Halloween came. Hogwarts was decorated in all of its usual splendor. During the feast Severus' mark burned. Severus looked over to Dumbledore and gave him a look and a nod that plainly said he was being called and would be back later. Severus dashed down and grabed his robes and mask and apparated to Voldemort's hiding place. As soon as he appeared in the room he noticed that it was empty. Voldemort stood up from his throne and said in forced politeness,  
  
"Ah, Severus. So good of you to join me. Remove your mask."  
  
Severus did so and waited for his 'master' to continue. Voldemort paused for a moment viewing the young man in front of him and letting his nervousness build. After what felt like an eternity to Severus Voldemort spoke again.  
  
"I remember you saying that your wife ran off with your son to James Potter who went into hiding to keep you away from them. This is correct is it not?"   
  
Severus nodded and Voldemort continued,  
  
"Well I have been informed this evening of their wherabouts. Apparently they went under the fidelius charm to hide from you. I was wondering if you would like to come with me and partake of this evening's fun."  
  
Severus internally paled, thought for a moment then spoke,  
  
"I fear that I must decline milord. Dumbledore is growing suspicious of me and if I do not return quickly then he will be even more suspicious and my position at Hogwarts will be compromised. I would be eternally grateful if you told me the name of the man who so generously provided this information though so that I might thank him in person." 'More like to wring his neck with my bare hands.' Severus mentally added on.  
  
Voldemort let out a weak chuckle and said,  
  
"Of course you are right Severus. And since you cannot join us then I will grant your request. The Potters used Peter Pettigrew as their secret keeper. He apparently lied low for a little while so as not to make them suspicious. He came to me tonight and told me. I plan to leave very soon. I will call you again after I get back to let you know how things turned out."  
  
Severus bowed low and said,  
  
"Thank you milord, you are too gracious."  
  
Voldemort smirked and said,  
  
"Yes Severus I suppose I am, now get back to the school before Dumbledore becomes even more suspicious."  
  
Severus bowed low and apparated back to Hogwarts. He was completely numb. He didn't even remember the walk down to his chambers. He wasn't even aware that the room was occupied until he felt Dumbledore's hands on his shoulders and vaguely heard him asking him what had happened. Severus didn't even remember what he said he just knew that he had collapsed to the floor and had started crying after the telling. He knew that he was going to lose his family that night and there was nothing that he could do about it.  
  
Suddenly there was an unbearable pain that ripped through his arm. It was not the kind of pain that signified a summoning. It burned worse than when he had first been branded with the mark. Severus gritted his teeth, rolled up his sleeve and looked down at the mark that had blood pouring from it but was quickly fading into nothing. Once it had totally faded Severus' eyes rolled into the back of his head and fell into a dead faint from pain and shock.  
  
**********************************************(a/n: you all know by now what happened at Godric's hollow so I'm not going to bother)************  
  
Severus slowly drifted back into consciousness. He finally opened his eyes only to be assaulted by the bright lights and white of the infirmary. He groaned then slowly sat up and then turned his head to be met with the smiling face of the Headmaster.  
  
"Glad to see you're awake Severus I have some wonderful news."  
  
Severus was slightly confused and feeling very much as if his head had been stuffed full of cotton and said impatiently,  
  
"Well what is it Albus?"  
  
"Harry survived Severus."  
  
This got Severus' attention who stared slack jawed in a very undignified manner. After several moments he finally stammered weakly,  
  
"How....what?"  
  
Suddenly Albus turned a bit serious and said,  
  
"I don't know how. But listen Severus. Muggles got to him first and was taken to a muggle hospital. I just found out that last detail mere hours ago and have been waiting for you to wake up."  
  
Severus hesitated for a moment and said,  
  
"Wait, how long have I been out?"  
  
"Two days." Albus replied simply  
  
Severus sat back and then after a few moments of silence said,  
  
"Well where is my son so I can go and get him."  
  
Albus simply handed Severus a small piece of parchment and said,  
  
"You'll find him there. I have been given no details about what condition he is in, just that he survived. You may bring him back here after he is released, of course."  
  
Severus curtly nodded then quickly got dressed. Only as he was finishing up did Madame Pomfrey come in and say,  
  
"You are not leaving, Severus Snape, until I look you over and tell you that you may leave."  
  
Severus grumbled then sat back down on the edge of the bed. Finally, a few minutes later Madame Pomfrey gave him permission to leave and he all but dashed out of the ward and the school. He quickly reached the apparation point and the next thing he knew it he was standing in front of Saint Michael's Hospital. He quickly realized that he was still wearing his full flowing black robes. He then quickly transfigured them into a muggle pants and shirt. After that he briskly walked into the hospital, found out where Harry was and quickly made his way there. As soon as he was inside the ward he heard high pitched screaming that could only be his son.   
  
He dashed into the room and saw a nurse trying to hold down poor Harry, who was screaming and crying hysterically, but to no avail. Severus quickly strode over, shoved the nurse aside, picked up Harry, held him to his chest and said harshly,  
  
"I will comfort my own son thank you very much."  
  
The muggle nurse grumbled something about children that don't stop crying and nobody coming to stop it in the first place and then stepped out of the room, to go back to doing whatever she was doing. Harry had almost instantly quieted down once he heard and felt his father's presence. Severus had sat down in the chair that was conviently placed next to Harry's crib while Harry was in his hiccough and sniffle phase.  
  
As soon as Harry had quieted down and fallen back to sleep a doctor entered the room and said,  
  
"I am Dr. Richards, I've been following the boy's case since he was brought in. Am I to assume that you're his father?"  
  
Severus nodded and said,   
  
"Yes my name is Severus Snape and this is my son, Harry. I was not aware that he was here until this morning and immediately came. I've been out of the country."  
  
The muggle doctor seemed to accept this excuse and said,  
  
"Well if you'd like to set Harry back in the crib I'm sure you'd like to be filled in on Harry's condition."  
  
Severus nodded and only then did he notice all the strange wires and tubes running all over the place and the bandages all over his sons body. He hesitated for a moment then turned and followed the doctor out into the hallway. Once there the doctor began.  
  
"Harry was brought in during the early hours of November 1st. Apparently there had been a fire in his home and he was the only survivor. His primary problems were breathing because he'd suffered smoke inhalation and he received second degree burns on 15% of his body. Also he has a rather curious scar on his forehead that we can't figure out how he got. It bled quite heavily but stopped quickly. Unfortunately there was a storm that passed through the area that night and since the house was in ruins he wasn't protected from the wind and rain so he's developed a slight case of pneumonia. We were lucky and caught the pneumonia early though so there should be hopefully no permanent damage, but it's still a bit early to tell if there is any. We've just been mostly concerned with his breathing because he's had some problems with that partially due to how upset he's been."  
  
Severus absorbed all the muggle was saying to him and then after a moment snapped from his reverie and said,  
  
"Well hopefully he won't be so upset anymore now that I'm here so that should help a bit. How long do you think he will need to be in here? My wife, his mother, was killed in the fire and I would like my son to be present at the funeral even though he is very young."  
  
The muggle's face softened and said,  
  
"I understand Mr. Snape and my sympathies for your loss. I expect that he should be able to be released in the next week or two. His burns are healing nicely, they were barely second degree so they weren't extremely severe, and since we caught the pneumonia and has been put on medication for it he's getting over that nicely. I believe that your wife's body was retrieved from the house along with another male and are down in the morgue if you want to see to it and make the appropriate arrangements."  
  
Severus nodded, extended his hand which the doctor promptly took and said,  
  
"Thank you Doctor Richards. For everything."  
  
"You're quite welcome Mr. Snape." Richards responded.  
  
Severus walked back to Harry's room and peeked in to see his son fast asleep looking content. Severus cracked a smile then went down to the nurses station and asked where he could find the morgue. He easily found his way and then came the painful task of identifying his late wife and best friend. Severus made arrangements to have the bodies transferred to Saint Andrews, which was a hospital that served the wizarding and muggle communities, so it would not seem suspicious.  
  
Severus went back up to Harry's room and sat back down in the chair next to Harry's crib, unconsciously started stroking the soft tufts of his sons jet black hair, and got lost in a world of his own thoughts and memories of what once was, all the while hearing the congested and ragged breathing coming from his son's tiny body. 


End file.
